Beleaguered media company Canwest Global Communications Corp. said Tuesday that its Canwest Media Inc. subsidiary has been given another extension on a US$30.4-million interest payment that was due on its debt.
The deal gives the company until April 21, the same deadline set by the company’s senior lenders, to come up with a solution.
Canwest said it reached the extension agreement with the members of an ad hoc committee of noteholders who hold approximately 70% of the outstanding notes.
The company missed a March 15 interest payment on its outstanding 8% senior subordinated notes.
Under the terms of the notes, failure to make the interest payment by Tuesday allowed the noteholders to demand payment of the US$761 million principal amount outstanding as well as the unpaid interest payment.
However under the terms of the extension agreement, the noteholders have agreed not to demand payment of their notes until April 21.
Canwest has already received several extensions on its repayment deadlines partly because it has shown lenders that it’s struggling to sell off non-core assets in a difficult environment, and because the market has devalued some of its assets.
Last week, the company reported a net loss of $1.44 billion in its latest quarter, including a $1.19-billion writedown of assets, mostly in its newspapers.
Revenue was $637 million, down by 9% from $701 million a year earlier.
